


Robin Reversal

by LERDM



Series: Batman Shorts [2]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Superman - All Media Types
Genre: Bruce Wayne is a Good Parent, Multi, Robin reversal, big brother damian, damian loves his brothers, damian secretly has emotions, he's at least trying, little brother dick
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-26
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:13:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24376336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LERDM/pseuds/LERDM
Summary: What if Damian is the oldest Robin? There's a lot that changes, but a lot that stays the same. They're still the chaotic, slightly dysfunctional family they've always been. Honestly, at this point, Bruce is just glad that Damian hasn't shown little Tim how to eviscerate someone with a katana.
Relationships: Alfred Pennyworth & Damian Wayne, Bruce Wayne & Damian Wayne, Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne, Jason Todd & Damian Wayne, Raven/Damian Wayne, Tim Drake & Damian Wayne, Tim Drake & Dick Grayson & Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne & Damian Wayne, Tim Drake/Kon-El | Conner Kent
Series: Batman Shorts [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1760062
Comments: 27
Kudos: 414





	1. Tim

**Author's Note:**

> So this is a polished version of the series of shorts found in my collection titled Welcome to the Family. If you liked this, be sure to check that out!

Age differences:

Bruce: 19 years older than Damian, 25 years older than Tim, 29 years older than Jason, 35 years older than Dick

Damian: 6 years older than Tim

Tim: 4 years older than Jason

Jason: 6 years older than Dick

Dick: a literal baby with so many big brothers

<><><><><><><>

Bruce had been Batman for nearly 10 years when Talia left Damian with him. It took… an adjustment period, but eventually they fell into a rhythm. Damian was trained very well in how to fight, how to kill. He quickly joined Bruce as a side-kick, later as a partner. He took on the identity of Robin.

However, their relationship began to deteriorate as Damian grew older and wanted to be seen as an equal, rather than just a side-kick. So he left. He left his family, the only one he ever would call a _family_ and slinked off to Bludhaven to attend the Bludhaven academy of arts.

Three months later, there was a new boy in the house, and six months after that, there was a new Robin. The fact that he had been… replaced, did sting Damian, but it was actually that this new Robin was clearly not trained enough to be running around with Batman that put Damian on edge. This was what he intended to rectify.

“Master Damian, we were not expecting you. Master Bruce is out for a moment, but-”

“I am aware, Pennyworth. I am here to see Drake,” Damian spoke.

Alfred raised an eyebrow but led him to the boy’s room.

“Master Timothy, Master Damian is here to see you,” Alfred said as he knocked on the door.

It opened to reveal a tiny boy, barely looking to be 10 even though he was already 12.

Tim quickly opened the door in surprise and Alfred left the boys to their conversation.

“Damian! It’s really nice to meet you! You were my hero growing up and you’re so cool and Nightwing is awesome and-” Tim cut himself off at the surprised look Damian was giving him. “Sorry, I got excited. I’m Tim.”

“I am aware of who you are, Drake.” Damian inspected the boy closely. “How is your leg? I saw that you injured it last night.”

“You saw what happened last night?” Tim asked in surprise.

“I was watching the news, yes.”

“Oh, right, well, I’m fine. It’s just a bruise.”

“Father never should have put you in that position. You are not ready to face foes such as that.”

Tim began to frown, “Are you here to tell me I can’t be Robin anymore?”

“Tt. No. I am here to ensure it will not happen again.”

Tim’s eyes then widened, “So you’re here to train me?”

“That is correct. Now come along Drake, we have no time to waste.”

Alfred was very pleased to see them getting along… if that was what you could call what they were doing was.

Damian was constantly insulting and pointing out flaws in Drake’s technique, which occasionally upset the boy, but mostly he learned from it.

Bruce was fine with Damian occasionally coming over to help train Tim, and he’d be lying if the boy wasn’t getting much better with every lesson. It also helped that Damian was Tim’s hero.

Many months later, Damian was sketching in his loft in Bludhaven for a bit before he was going to go out on patrol. Then there was a knock on the window. Damian looked up to see that Tim was crouching there.

He opened the window. “Drake. What are you doing here?”

Tim sniffled and Damian could tell the boy had been crying.

“B-Bruce and I had a- had a fight and he said that-that I couldn’t be R-Robin anymore,” Tim said shakily.

Damian scowled internally at his father.

“Tell me what happened.”

Drake regaled him with the story of how they were facing down Killer Croc in the sewers and instead of getting to a safe distance as Batman had ordered, he had come back in to help.

“Father was right to be angry with you, you could have gotten yourself killed,” Damian said after hearing the story.

Tim then became a small ball of fury. “What?! You’re on his side?!”

“You were inadequately prepared to deal with the threat at hand. It is pure luck that you were not killed.”

“So… you think I shouldn’t be Robin anymore either?” Tim asked. His eyes were welling with more tears.

Damian hesitated, thinking carefully before he spoke. As much as it pained him to say, he had become… _attached_ to Drake emotionally.

“I don’t think you ever should have been Robin.” Tim’s eyes shot up to meet his with betrayal written clearly in them. “Because you could be so much more than that. You should have been given the chance to make your own mantle.”

Suddenly the betrayal from Tim’s gaze was gone and the little boy had leapt upon his older brother.

Damian froze for a second before wrapping his arms around the small boy. “You can stay here for a while.”

“Thanks, Dami,” Tim sniffled into Damian’s shirt.

He put Tim in his bed and tucked him in before going out on patrol. When he returned, Tim was awake and was looking sad once again.

“Why are you awake?”

“I had a nightmare about you. That you wouldn’t come back from your patrol,” Tim confided.

“Well… I’m back,” Damian said. He wasn’t exactly sure what to do, he was not very good at consoling people.

Tim nodded but hesitated when Damian told him to go back to sleep. “Only if you come too.”

Damian huffed but relented. He slept on his back, completely straight, but Tim tossed and turned for a long time before he eventually settled into place tucked into Damian’s side.

…

Tim had been Robin for two years when he decided to heed Damian’s advice and become something new. Damian had to bite back a scoff when the 14-year-old proposed the derivative Red Robin as his new title, but he quickly came into his own and Damian was… proud.

However, Damian wasn’t the only al Guhl to take an interest in Timothy Drake.

When he got word that his grandfather had taken Timothy as a prisoner, he could barely think straight. He couldn’t remember being that angry in a long time.

He wasted no time in flying back to his birthplace, Nanda Parbat.

“Grandfather!” Damian boomed. He was covered in blood and sand from fighting his way into the inner chambers.

“Ah, Damian, it is good to see you once more,” Ra’s said with a sick smile.

“Where is he?” Damian demanded.

“Young Timothy is perfectly safe and healthy here.”

“What do you want with him?”

“Since you have made your views on becoming my heir quite clear, I have had to choose a new one. Timothy is a great detective and a good fighter. He will serve me well.”

Damian’s blood began to boil. “If you believe that he is here willingly, you are more delusional than I thought.”

Ra’s smirked, “You will not be taking him from here, not without taking lives. What would your  _ father _ think of that?”

Damian clenched his jaw. “What would I have to do for you to give Timothy back?”

“I need an heir, not now, but soon. You can take Timothy with you now, if you promise me I will have a worthy successor someday,” Ra’s said.

Damian knew Ra’s was plotting something, that his grandfather knew that he would never willingly go back to the League of Assassins. Yet he agreed anyway because Ra’s had taken Tim, knowing that Damian would come for him and that made this Damian’s fault.

Tim was led out to Damian, and Tim looked up at him with worried eyes. “Damian, whatever you’re doing, don’t. It’s not worth it.”

Ra’s and Damian locked eyes once again, and Damian looked away. “Follow me, Drake.”

Damian’s return with Tim in tow was met with happiness but also apprehension.

“Damian,” Bruce started. “What happened? How did you get Ra’s to give him up?”

Damian ignored him and left the manor. Tim had helped mend their relationship, but it was still often tense.

A while after that, Tim moved to San Francisco to work full time with the Titans. Damian got word that he was now dating the alien clone. Damian had some work to do.

“Do you know who I am?” Damian asked menacingly as he walked around Superboy. He was tied to a chair with a piece of kryptonite nearby.

“Yes. You’re Nightwing, Robin’s older brother,” Superboy said. His voice was trembling in terror.

Damian nodded. “That is correct. Now, I understand that you are now in a relationship with him?”

“Y-yes,” Superboy said.

“You are an alien clone, what makes you think you are worthy of my brother?”

Superboy paused, “I’m not, but he- he wanted to and I really like him, so I said yes.”

Damian looked at Conner and sent a shiver down the boy’s spine.

“You are not as much of a fool as I suspected. So listen well. If I  _ ever _ hear that you have hurt him, I will kill you. If I  _ ever _ hear that you so much as looked at him without his permission, I will kill you, If I-”

Damian was cut off by the wall beside him exploding. He was on guard for whoever was going to come through, though he relaxed slightly when he saw that it was simply Robin and the rest of the Titans.

Robin’s eyes widened when he saw what Damian was doing to his boyfriend.

“Nightwing?! What are you doing?!” Robin exclaimed.

“Just passing on a warning,” Damian said casually to Tim. He turned back to Conner, “Have I made myself clear?”

Superboy was trembling, “Yes sir.”

Tim was watching with abject horror on his face.

Later that night Superboy told Robin exactly what Nightwing had said to him. Robin, much to Connor’s dismay immediately left to go confront his big brother.

Damian, as it turned out, was at Wayne manor having a drink with Bruce when he burst in.

“You threatened to kill my boyfriend!” He shouted at Damian.

Damian did not react, “Yes.”

Bruce raised an eyebrow in amusement.

“Why?!” Tim exclaimed.

“Because I was concerned about your relationship with him. In my experience, those Kryptonians do not have enough fear in them. He had to know that anything he might do to harm you would result in consequences for him.”

Tim blinked, “Oh.”

Bruce smiled slightly at Damian’s confusion. “What did you think I did?”

“I don’t know, I just thought you didn’t like him,” Tim said.

“I don’t like him,” Damian replied quickly. Tim’s face fell. “But if you are… attached to him, I suppose I can tolerate his increased presence.”

Tim smiled slightly at Damian, “Right, well. Thanks, Dami.”

Then Tim left and Bruce looked at Damian proudly. “You’re a good brother, Damian.”

“Tt. I am no such thing.”


	2. Jason

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason enters and exits Damian's life.

Three weeks later, Jason stole the tires off the Batmobile. Damian was not fond of Jason, not at all. He hadn’t with Tim either, at the beginning.

However, the more he spoke with Jason, the more he realized that he and the child had more in common than he thought. Unlike with Tim, Jason had been a natural fighter, and so Damian started to spend more time with Jason talking about books, of which Jason was an avid reader.

Jason was very tough on the outside, and like Damian, he had a hard time opening up emotionally. So they would often spend time sitting and reading in silence. Jason, after officially becoming Robin, would often retreat to Bludhaven to stay with Damian after a rough night with Bruce. The two of them sometimes went to art galleries, museums, theatre performances. Damian hadn't always had an appreciation for the fine arts, but as he had grown and realized that his entire life didn't have to be about fighting, and since he became an artist himself, he tended to enjoy those sorts of things.

Jason certainly enjoyed them. The classics were his absolute favourite. One year for his birthday, Damian got his hands on a first edition of Jane Austen's 'Emma', Jason beamed for weeks.

Damian took Jason to see Les Mis on broadway and Jason was humming One Day More for the next month.

This continued on for nearly two years until one day Jason came to Damian crying.

Damian had  _ never _ seen Jason cry before.

“Are you hurt?” Damian demanded, dragging his hands over the boy’s broad shoulders, checking for injuries.

“N-no,” Jason sobbed.

Damian looked at the boy with confusion. “Why are you upset?”

“B-Bruce thinks I- he thinks I-” Jason had to stop. “I didn’t push him! He fell, I swear. I didn’t kill him!”

Damian’s heart fell. Father thought that Jason had killed someone when clearly he hadn’t.

“I believe you, Jason,” Damian said. His words whipped Jason’s eyes to him. Damian rarely called him by his first name, usually only referring to him as Todd. “Why don’t you tell me what happened?”

Jason tearfully recounted the story to Damian. When he was done, Damian had a cup of tea ready for the boy.

But Jason had yet another bombshell to drop on Damian, “And Bruce, he knows who my mom is.” Damian was about to open his mouth in confusion but Jason continued. “He’s known this whole time that Catherine wasn’t really my mom and he never told me.”

“Todd, Catherine was your mother, just because she did not give birth to you does not mean that she wasn’t your mother,” Damian said.

“Shelia, that’s my mom’s name. She’s a doctor, she’s like… a really good person. I really want to meet her, but Bruce wasn’t even going to tell me that she existed.”

Jason was very hurt, Damian could tell. “Jason, come, get some sleep, we can talk more about this in the morning, okay?”

Jason nodded blearily. He allowed Damian to put him into his bed and fell asleep quite quickly.

Damian then dialled his father.

“Damian, is Jason-”

“Father, you have made some grave errors,” Damian all but growled into the speaker.

“What?” Bruce asked.

“First of all, if you were to find out that Martha Wayne wasn’t your biological mother and that Alfred had known the entire time but not said anything, would you be upset?”

“That’s not-”

“Second, he did not push that man off the roof. And you blaming a child for that is unacceptable.”

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a moment.

“I didn’t-” there was a sigh. “He wouldn’t tell me what happened, so I asked him if he pushed him, I never blamed him. I wouldn’t do that.”

“Well he does not see it that way, and after all this time, I’d expect you to know better about reading your children.”

“Is he with you? I just want to know he’s okay,” Bruce said. Defeated.

“He’s with me, and he will remain with me for as long as he needs.”

Damian hung up. His father could be so insanely dense that it blew his mind how he’s managed to live this long raising three children.

Jason ended up staying with him for another three days and Damian ignored Bruce’s calls out of principle.

Then Jason returned to the manor at the behest of Alfred.

Four days later, Bruce showed up at Damian’s apartment.

He looked… so tired. His eyes were red as if he had been crying for hours on end. He also appeared as if he hadn’t eaten or slept in a long time.

“Father,” Damian said. “You look terrible.”

Bruce barely acknowledged that. “Damian… I-” Bruce choked on his words and Damian began to feel that something was not quite right. “I don’t know how to do this, how to-to  _ say _ this... it’s- it’s  _ Jason _ .”

Something about the way Bruce said his name put Damian on edge.

“What happened? Was he injured?” Damian questioned. Maybe a part of him knew the answer already, and that was why when he heard the words he was able to put on the facade of non-reaction.

“He-he’s… he’s  _ dead _ , Jason is dead,” Bruce said.

Damian displayed no emotion, not one bit. Then he shut the door in Bruce’s face.

Bruce stared at where Damian used to be. It was so much worse than the screaming he had expected to get.

Damian wasted no time in preparing for his strike back. He went to his computer that was connected to the Batcave network and looked into the death of his brother. His  _ brother _ . That was when it started to hit Damian and even him with his iron will couldn’t keep the one persistent tear within his eye.

He read the report, the mission that went wrong. His dead mother, the  _ Joker _ .

The Joker killed his baby brother.

He knew what he had to do.

Damian went to the cabinet in his bedroom and entered the code that opened the secret panel behind it. There was a whole other room back there full of gear. Though Damian walked past his Nightwing attire, instead stripping down an old suit just to black and grabbing his katana. His weapon of choice back when he was the heir to the League of Assassins.

He waited until nightfall, then dressed and headed to Gotham.

It didn’t take long for Damian to get onto the trail of the clown. He questioned members of the Joker Gang and that lead him to Harley.

“I ain’t tellin’ you nothin’,” Harley said with a smile. “Puddin’s safe and sound.”

Damian drew his sword. Harley looked at him with surprise. "Ain't you one of the bats? Ya probably shouldn't be carrying around a sword unless ya want to... oh."

The tip of Damian's sword was pressed against Harley's throat. "I want the Joker, Harley. Tell me where he is."

"Why do ya want him anyway? I thought he'd only messed with the big Bat recently."

"I don't care about what he did or didn't do to Batman." Damian began to draw blood with the amount of force he was putting onto her throat. "He killed my little brother."

Harley looked up at Damian with a hint of confusion, "I... I don't know nothing about that. I swear. I don't do nothing to kids."

"Then tell me where he is."

Harley looked up at the masked man and rattled off an address. "Mistah J won't be alone. He has half of our best boys with 'im."

"Good." Damian took a step back and lowered his sword. Harley looked relieved. She was less relieved when he suddenly lunged forward and embedded his katana in her torso. He growled into her face. "Everyone he's ever hurt, you've stood by and done nothing. You killed my brother just as much as the clown. You will never touch another person again." Damian jerked his sword upward, delivering the killing blow. He wiped off some of the blood and left the scene. He had a clown to kill.

With Harley's instructions, it wasn't difficult to find the Joker. He slaughtered the members of the gang that got in his way.

Soon the Joker was right there, standing in front of him.

"Colour me impressed! That was some top-notch murder back there!" Joker said gleefully. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Damian didn't speak until he was only a few steps away from the clown. At least Harley had had the common sense to be afraid of him. But everyone knew that the Joker knew no fear.

"I've come to kill you, any last words?" Damian asked.

"Not really, will you give daddyBats my best? I hear he's recently lost a bird. That wouldn't happen to be the reason you're here... is it?" Joker had a sick grin.

"I will give him nothing. And I will spit on your grave. You killed my little brother, prepare to die." Jason would have loved that Princess Bride reference. He ran his sword through the Joker's heart and he didn't feel a thing other than satisfaction.

He escaped Gotham without an issue. By the time GCPD and Batman were on the case, he was already back in his apartment in Bludhaven. Then he lost it a little. He trashed his apartment, throwing books, shattering glass, knocking over chairs, punching the walls. It was lucky that Damian had bought the apartments below and beside his, or else surely there would have been a noise complaint.

Then he cried himself to sleep.

He didn’t answer his phone the next morning, or the next one, and Tim was really worried. He and Jason had never been very close, but he knew that Damian loved Jason, maybe even more than Damian loved Tim.

Bruce had called Tim the night of Harley and Joker’s murder to ask him if he had seen Damian recently. When Tim had said no, Bruce had hung up. Tim thought it was strange, so he turned on the news. He dropped his mug of coffee. Conner, who had been sleeping in the next room zoomed over to see if Tim was okay, and he too was stunned.

They were dead, the clown prince of crime was dead and so was his deranged girlfriend. Not only were they dead, they were butchered. Them and anyone who had tried to intervene. When Bruce had been given the autopsy report, they told him that the Joker and Harley's hearts had been almost completely cut in half. There were very few blades that could cut through bone and tissue alike with such precision and delicacy.

“Who did that?” Conner asked Tim.

“I… I think it might have been Damian,” Tim replied shakily.

<><><><>

Bruce had been banging on Damian’s door for five minutes when he finally just gave up and picked the lock. When he came in, he was shocked. There was blood smeared all over the walls, which had several holes in them. There was broken glass all over the floor, chairs were toppled.

Damian wasn’t one to lash out like this usually, so Bruce was very concerned.

He looked around a bit more and he figured that Damian hadn’t been there for a few days. He was about to go back to the car when he got a text message from Tim.

‘Hey B, think Damian’s following me? Not sure it’s him, but I think it is. Gonna try and talk to him. I’ll keep you updated.’ The text read.

Bruce sighed. He was livid at Damian for this, but yet… no one had the reaction to it that he had been expecting.

Alfred had been disappointed, not that they were dead, but just that the plan he was in the midst of forming to kill Joker himself was now unnecessary.

Jim Gordon, upon learning that Batman suspected Nightwing was the murderer, said he’d leave it off the books.

The entirety of Gotham was actually in a state of celebration at the death of the clown and his psychotic assistant.

Everyone except for Bruce, that was.

On his drive home, he got another text from Tim.

‘Couldn’t find him. Still not 100% that he was there.’

Bruce sighed for what felt like the millionth time that day. He was desperately trying to pull himself together leading up to Jason’s funeral, but he felt like he was failing in every way.

Alfred greeted him when he got home. “Master Bruce, were you successful in finding Master Damian?”

“No, he wasn’t there, Tim thinks he might be in San Francisco. His apartment was… he punched the walls until they were covered in blood, Alfred.”

“Master Damian cared for Master Jason just as deeply as the rest of us, Master Bruce,” Alfred reminded.

Bruce nodded solemnly before stumbling and leaning against a wall. Alfred watched with a slight alarm in his eyes as Bruce slid down the wall to sit on the floor.

“I miss him so much Alfred,” Bruce said. He was crying, sobbing, might be the better word for it.

Alfred crouched beside him, “As do I, Master Bruce, as do I.”

<><><><><>

Three days later was Jason’s funeral, Bruce and Alfred were the first ones there, Clark and Lois came next. Tim brought Conner. Jim Gordon came as well, along with a handful of others Oliver Queen was there with his ward and Jason’s best friend, Roy Harper. 

Just before the ceremony was set to start, Damian arrived in an all-black suit with sunglasses on to make it harder for anyone to read his expression. Most of the people who were in attendance knew, or at least heavily suspected, that Damian was the one who killed the Joker and Harley Quinn.

Bruce had risen from his seat to walk back a few rows to speak with Damian, but Alfred’s hand on Bruce’s arm and his quiet voice telling him that right then was not a good time, made him sit back down.

After the service was done, Damian surprised all of them by going right up to Jason’s grave and whispering words of parting in Arabic along the lines of: “I will always miss you, brother, rest well.”

He then knelt by Jason’s grave for a while longer before standing. Tim, nervous he would try to disappear again, came up to speak with him.

“Damian…” Tim started. “I… I’m sorry.”

Damian stood to his full height and it was like Tim was 12 years old again. Damian hugged him tightly before looking at Conner. “I’ve told you this before and I will do it again. If you let anybody touch him, I’ll kill you.” Damian’s voice was raw. It was more emotion than Tim could really remember him expressing. The words, though meant to be sweet(? at least Tim thought so) came off a bit differently now that everyone knew that Damian had no qualms about killing the people that hurt his little brothers.

“I won’t,” Conner replied seriously.

Damian nodded curtly. He then made his way away from the grave and encountered Alfred.

“Master Damian,” Alfred said. The two of them never really had the close relationship that the others had had. Tim enjoyed Alfred’s presence and companionship. Jason had loved the man with every fibre of his being, he loved listening to stories of Alfred’s old theatre days, he loved cooking with Alfred, he loved everything about the old man.

“Pennyworth, I am… very sorry for your loss.”

Alfred brought the boy in for a hug, something they had never done before. So it was not surprising to Damian that it was actually to conceal something else. “I know you loved that boy, Master Damian, as did I. Unlike your father, I do not begrudge you your revenge. Just do not lose yourself,” Alfred whispered into Damian’s ear.

Damian stepped back and looked at Alfred with a new light. He nodded slightly, “Thank you, Pennyworth.”

He was almost back to his car when an unexpected person approached him. Roy Harper, Jason’s best friend.

“Damian?” He asked hesitantly. They had never met, so it wasn’t particularly surprising that Roy didn’t immediately recognize him.

“Harper,” Damian spoke neutrally.

Roy looked down, not really sure what to say. “Umm, I just thought, I don’t know. Jaybird always said you were really cool, and… well, you were like his favourite person. I don’t know if he ever said that to you cause he wasn’t really good at that sort of thing. So… yeah.”

Damian could spot several nervous people pretending not to watch their interaction.

“He… did, yes. He also told me about you often. I will impart you with some advice, Harper.” Oliver looked like he was ready to step in at any moment if Damian was about to say something terrible. “He knew you were stronger than you thought you were. Don’t prove him wrong.”

With that, Damian left. He was surprised that Bruce had not tried to confront him then and there, but it was likely for the best.

Damian returned to his life in Bludhaven, painting commissions and being Nightwing in the dark. He still couldn't enter an art gallery without nearly breaking down. He could barely even look at any books. He didn't listen to music anymore. But he was perfectly fine. Anyone who said otherwise was simply projecting their grief onto him. Obviously.

Tim wanted to reach out, he did, but their relationship wasn’t what it used to be. They had been close when he was younger, and Damian was still fiercely protective of him, but besides their nightly activities, Tim and Damian didn’t really have anything in common. Jason had been like a pea in Damian’s pod. They both liked reading and had a similar appreciation for history, it wasn’t unusual that they would spend an entire day together and never mention their nightlives. So Tim left Damian to his own devices.

Bruce never had the explosive argument that he was expecting to have with Damian, mostly because his eldest son was very good at avoiding him.

The next time Bruce saw Damian was three months after Jason’s funeral, two days after he had taken in a young Dick Grayson.

No words were actually exchanged, Bruce answered the door, Damian punched him hard across the face, and by the time Alfred came to see what had happened, Damian was already gone.


	3. Dick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little acrobat contorts himself into Damian's life.

Dick hadn’t met Damian yet. He had met Tim a bunch, and what he had heard was sort of confusing to the 9-year-old. Tim told him Damian was protective, yet he had not yet come to meet Dick, and the last time he was at the manor he attacked Bruce and then left. Tim told him that Damian was nice once you got to know him, but he was avoiding Dick, so he never got the chance.

Eventually, the kid had enough. He snuck away from Alfred during the day while Bruce was at work and slowly made his way to Bludhaven.

He knocked on Damian’s door, and it was opened pretty quickly after.

Damian looked down at the small boy.

“What do you want?”

“I’m Dick Grayson,” he said.

“I am aware. I will repeat; what do you want?” He spoke with a sneer.

Dick blinked, “Well… I just wanted to meet you.”

Damian was many things, but heartless was not one of them, despite what many people thought. He had no intention of making the boy upset, so when he began to cry on his doorstep, of course, he brought the child inside.

And if he made Dick hot chocolate and put on one of those ridiculous cartoons about ninjas and talking turtles, then that was just to make him stop crying. Not because he actually cared. Not at all.

“Can we go do something together?” Dick asked.

Damian looked up from his sketchbook. “What?”

“Like, can we go to an amusement park?” Dick asked. “I’ve never been to the one in Gotham because Bruce is always 'busy'.”

“I’m not certain that’s the best idea. Perhaps I should just bring you back to the manor, I’m sure Father and Pennyworth are worried about your whereabouts.”

Dick knew just the response to this. “Well, I thought you didn’t want to see Bruce.”

Damian narrowed his eyes, “Are you… attempting to manipulate me?”

“No…?”

Damian sighed, “Fine. I will take you.”

He soon found that Dick was an endless ball of energy. Perhaps he should tell Drake and they could use the small child to power the greater Gotham area.

Dick demanded that they go on all the rides and play all the games. The boy was delighted when they won a big stuffed elephant.

They were walking back to Damian’s car, he saw that Dick was shivering a little. He pulled off his jacket and gave it to the boy wordlessly, though Dick was very excited to wear it, even though it was obscenely large on him.

Dick fell asleep in the car, and he’d had a long day, so Damian carefully picked up the kid and took him inside.

Once he opened the front door he could hear the sounds of Bruce anxiously talking with Alfred.

“I’m calling the Commissioner, it’s past dark now, if he’s out there alone, I-”

Bruce stopped as he and Alfred both simultaneously turned to see who had entered the house.

To say Bruce was shocked when he saw Dick sleeping in Damian’s arms was an understatement.

Damian wordlessly moved past the two men and went up the stairs. He tucked Dick into his bed and went back downstairs.

He was just going to leave but then Bruce stopped him.

“You should have called me when he showed up,” Bruce said.

Damian turned on his heel and he scowled at Bruce, “He specifically asked me not to. I don’t suppose you have anything to say about that?”

Bruce’s face hardened. “Damian, he could have been in danger.”

Bruce immediately knew he said the wrong thing because Damian’s eyes lit up with rage. “Oh?! Like Jason was in danger?! What good did you do then?! He should have stayed with  _ me _ !” Damian shouted. “How dare you?! How dare you take in someone after that?! Are we really so replaceable to you?!”

Bruce was hit hard by Damian’s outburst. He had never been one of raising his voice and rather leaned towards quiet rage and sharp but soft-spoken words. But instead of seeing a heartbroken boy, he saw a challenge to his parenting and an attack at his already bleeding heart.

“How dare  _ I _ ?! You  _ killed _ Joker and Harley! You crossed a line!”

“I avenged him like he wanted!” Damian shouted back.

Bruce looked at Damian with confusion, and suddenly all the anger melted off of him. “What?” Bruce nearly whispered.

" The last time I saw him, he asked me if I ever thought about killing the Joker. And I lied to him and said no for you!" Damian nearly screamed. "All of this is your fault! You made him a soldier and he never had a goddamn chance! He was tortured to death! And you couldn't even keep that _thing_ in a prison long enough for a funeral! You're a disgrace! I don't think you ever cared for any of us at all! I should have killed all of them! But I didn't! Because of you! Because those are your rules! Don't talk to me about crossing lines!" Damian was more livid than Bruce had ever seen him before. "You're simply lucky that Timothy is still alive because if I had lost both of them-" Damian cut himself off. "If I had..." He looked up at Bruce with a cold, quiet fury. "If you had gotten them both killed, it wouldn't have just been the Joker I'd have gone after."

"Master Damian!" Alfred gasped.

Bruce crumpled against a wall as if he had just been struck down and Damian suddenly understood what he had just said.

He froze as Alfred stared between the two men, trying to decide what to do.

"I... Father, I'm-" Bruce looked up with red eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. I know you care for Timothy and I... and Richard. You didn't- it wasn't your fault, I'm sorry. I just-"  Bruce stood and embraced Damian tightly. The young man tensed, but his father hung on. "I'm sorry, I just miss him."

"So do I, Damian. I... I miss you too."

Damian was still tense but began to return Bruce's embrace. "I'm sorry, truly. I don't know why I said that. I didn't mean it."

"It's okay," Bruce murmured. After another moment they separated. "You can stay the night here if you'd like." His voice sounded hopeful, he wanted his son to stay close.

“No, I should get back to Bludhaven. I have to meet with a client tomorrow.” 

Bruce's smile faltered slightly.  “Okay, well, drive safely.”

“Tt. I always do.”

“Yeah, I know. Goodnight, Damian.”

“Goodnight Father.”

<><><><><>

Damian was officially Dick Grayson’s favourite person. He had Alfred or Bruce drive him out to Bludhaven at least once a week so they could hang out together.

About six months after Dick Grayson’s entrance into the family, the man who was behind the murder of his parents was going on trial.

Dick had asked Damian to come to when he was supposed to testify, so Damian did. Of course, Bruce was slightly nervous about Damian seeing the man who hurt Dick so badly, but Damian showed no sign of violence.

Dick came and sat between Bruce and Damian when he was done testifying. Damian put an arm around the boy, who leaned into Damian. Bruce felt only a tinge of jealousy.

A few weeks later, the trial was over, and it seemed that the man was going to walk free thanks to the mob’s influence. It infuriated Bruce, as much progress had been made in Gotham, some things remained the same.

What really worried him, however, was when Damian showed up at the manor the night before the verdict was to be announced.

He requested to speak with Richard in private, and Bruce tried to eavesdrop but was mostly unsuccessful.

Damian was kneeling in front of Dick in the library.

“I hate him, Dami,” Dick said. “Why is he going to be let go?”

Damian wiped away some of Dick’s tears. “This world is… all wrong. I am sorry, Richard.”

Dick sniffled, “It’s not your fault.”

“I know. I… I just want you to know that if anything ever-” Damian stopped, wanting to say it right. “I would do  _ anything  _ to keep you safe, do you understand? If anything ever happens and you think you can’t tell anyone, you tell me. I won’t be mad, I just want to help you.”

Dick nodded and hugged his tough-on-the-outside, teddy-bear-on-the-inside big brother.

Bruce was concerned that Damian had offered Dick his services in killing the man that killed his parents but he didn’t want to start another fight with Damian by bringing it up.

The next day, Damian was glued to Dick’s side, and Dick wouldn’t have had it any other way.

To everyone’s surprise, the man was convicted, and Dick was crying happy tears as they left the courthouse.

<><><><>

Bruce went missing not long after. Tim and Damian had a huge fight. Tim believed beyond reason that Bruce was alive, and Damian wasn’t willing to give Dick, or even himself, hope when there was none. His father was dead.

Damian moved back to Gotham, moved back into the manor. He made Dick Robin, Dick ran to  _ him _ when he had a nightmare, his school called  _ Damian’s _ number when they needed to reach his guardian.

So when Tim rolled up to the manor one day with Bruce in tow… Damian felt more conflicted than he should have.

He immediately withdrew, moving back to Bludhaven.

Dick was absolutely heartbroken about Damian’s sudden departure, and Bruce wasn’t exactly sure what was going on. Most days he felt as if he had been outdone as a father, by Damian no less, which simultaneously made him feel proud of his previously cold and emotionally closed off son but also slightly upset that that relationship with Dick had been taken from him.

Damian had only been back in Bludhaven for a week when a message was sent to him from his grandfather. It was a note, handwritten, saying:  _ Consider our deal fulfilled _ .

Damian’s heart pounded in his chest as he wasted no time speeding toward San Francisco. Tim wasn’t answering his phone.

He practically kicked in the door of Tim’s apartment and was greeted by Tim and Conner in the midst of an intimate moment. The two younger men screamed in embarrassment.

A few minutes and a pair of pants later, Damian was in the midst of threatening Conner again when Tim interrupted.

“Why are you even here?” Tim asked.

Damian stopped pacing in front of the two of them, who were sitting on the couch.

“It does not matter now. I’m sorry for interrupting your… activities.”

“No, no, no. I want to know what you think gives you the right to show up here like this after everything you put me through this past year,” Tim demanded.

Damian swallowed back an angry remark. “I was concerned for your safety. My Grandfather led me to believe that he had taken you again.”

Tim looked up at Damian with an unreadable expression. “Oh, well… thanks, I guess, for coming.”

Damian gave Tim this unreadable look.

Damian left and sat in his car as he dialled Richard’s number.

“Hey Dami!” Richard chirped. “What’s up?”

Damian let out a relieved breath, “Nothing Richard, I just wanted to… ask how your day has been.”

Damian listened to Richard rabble on about his day and it was soothing to Damian, who had been so afraid.

A question remained, what did Ra’s mean?

He drove back to Gotham in contemplative silence and found himself driving up to the manor before he had answers.

Bruce greeted him at the door with a slightly worried frown.

“What’s going on?” Bruce asked.

“My Grandfather has sent me… a troubling message, one that I don’t understand,” Damian started. He explained the message that was sent and the deal he had made with Ra’s many years ago. “I went to make sure Timothy was safe, and Richard is here with you, so I find myself uncertain about what he meant.”

“Maybe he just found someone else, someone within the League already?” Bruce proposed.

Damian was about to refute that when Dick came running out to greet Damian.

“Dami!” Dick literally flipped into Damian’s arms. “I missed you so much! You’ll never believe what happened last night on patrol!” Dick told Damian all about their activities and, much to Bruce’s chagrin, how Bruce kept letting him do dangerous things that Damian hadn’t allowed.

Damian was glaring at Bruce while Dick babbled on. Once the boy was done with his tales he wanted Damian to come down to the cave so he could show him some of his new moves. Damian grumbled about it, but he followed the little boy anyway.

Damian ended up staying the night in the manor. He planned on leaving for Bludhaven in the afternoon while Dick was at school so he wouldn’t get upset when Damian wouldn’t give in to his requests to stay. Those plans were wrenched slightly when Damian got a phone call from Dick’s school.

“Hi, Mr. Damian Wayne?” One of the administrators asked.

“Yes.”

“I’m calling from Gotham Academy, there’s been an incident involving your brother Richard Grayson. I know you removed yourself as the primary contact, but we’ve been unable to reach your father.”

“I’ll be there in 15 minutes.”

Damian quickly changed into a white button-down shirt and dress pants and left in one of Bruce’s nice cars.

He arrived at the school exactly 15 minutes later and coincidentally, at the same time that Bruce did.

“Damian?” Bruce asked. “What are you doing here?”

“They called me, seeing as you weren’t answering your phone,” Damian said. His judgement was not quite so silent.

Bruce grit his teeth, “Well, I’m here now.”

“I can see that. I think I will still see what was so urgent.” Damian walked into the school ahead of Bruce.

They were side-by-side in the hallway outside the office when Dick poked his head out. His eyes were red and he looked quite distraught.

He ran towards them, and wrapped his arms tightly around Damian. Bruce tried not to let that hurt.

“Richard, what happened?” Damian asked bluntly.

“A bunch of kids started saying really bad things about my parents,” Dick said. “And that Bruce only took me in for publicity.”

Bruce crouched down so that he was the same height as Dick.

“Oh chum, you have to know that’s not true. I love you, so much,” Bruce said.

Dick nodded before burying his head into Damian’s abdomen again. Damian pressed a reassuring hand into Dick’s hair.

Just then, the principal came out and blinked in surprise that both Mr. Waynes had arrived. He ushered them into his office so they could come to an agreement. Damian pushed for the other children to be expelled, the principal explained that there were too many of them and the compromise was that the child who started it was expelled and the other participants would have detention for a month.

Dick wanted to ride with Damian back to the manor, so he did, leaving Bruce to wonder what made Dick so attached to Damian when he had never done anything like that with Bruce.

Damian had the faster car and therefore arrived at the manor a few minutes before Bruce had. When Bruce got out of the car, he could hear Dick’s wailing.

He entered the manor quickly to see what was going on.

“Richard, I have to go,” Damian said calmly.

“No! I don’t want you to go! I want you to stay here with me!” Dick shouted. Hot, angry tears were racing down his cheeks.

“Richard, I have responsibilities in Bludhaven,” Damian tried to explain.

“But you didn’t leave before! Bruce came back and then you left!”

“I… I know. Things are different now, Bruce is back and-”

“I want you!” Richard shouted.

Damian’s composure was falling apart so Bruce decided that he was going to intervene, even though the words said thus far had hit him very hard.

He entered the room fully. Dick turned to see him, “Bruce! Tell Damian he has to stay!”

“Dick, I’m sorry, but-”

“No! No, he has to stay!” Richard shouted.

“Master Dick, if you would, please explain why you feel Master Damian must stay here?” Alfred asked, coming onto the scene.

Dick sniffed and looked up at Alfred, “Because everyone always leaves, Alfred. My-my parents left me, and then Bruce came along, and then he left, and now Damian’s leaving too! But he’s not allowed! He’s all alone, what if something happens to him while he’s gone and I don’t get to see him again!”

Damian then knew exactly what to do, apparently. He swooped in behind Dick and held him tightly.

“Listen, Richard. I can handle myself. I know that you’re afraid of losing people you care about, and I know what father and I do is dangerous, but I’m not going anywhere.”

“That’s what Bruce said too,” Dick said.

“I know, and I also know that he’s sorry that he missed out on getting to know you like I have, but maybe you can give him a chance. He knows a thing or two about being a father…” Damian trailed off. He released Dick. “You can come visit this weekend, okay?”

Dick nodded and wiped the tears off his face. He hugged Damian one more time. “I love you, Dami.”

Damian froze, but slowly returned the hug. “I... I love you too.”


	4. Jason Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The return of Jason.

Damian’s life returned back to the new normal. Richard visited on Saturdays, occasionally Bruce came as well. Timothy called him once or twice a week. He and Pennyworth wrote letters to each other, both enjoying the more formal correspondence.

Damian was just ending his usual phone call with Tim when someone knocked on his door. That was highly unusual, so he said goodbye to Timothy and went to the door.

He opened it, prepared to attack whoever was on the other side. As soon as his brain could process the person he saw before him, he almost passed out.

“Jason?” Damian gasped as if he was seeing a ghost, which… he sort of was. An older Jason was standing there in jeans, a red hoodie and a leather jacket with a duffle bag flung over his shoulder.

“Damian… I… I didn’t know where else to go,” Jason said.

Damian was still standing there, staring. He then took a step forward and wrapped his arms around his little brother. He was shaking, and he was crying, but he didn’t care. Jason was  _ here _ , in his arms. He came back, and suddenly, one of the greatest heartbreaks Damian had ever felt was healed.

Jason was crying too, whatever he had been expecting by just showing up on Damian’s doorstep, it wasn’t this. Damian was crying. Jason had never seen nor heard of Damian crying before. Hell, he had seen his older brother stabbed in the back and not make a noise. But here he was, crying over Jason.

“Jason… how?” Damian whispered into Jason’s hair.

“I’m not really sure,” Jason whispered back.

Damian brought him inside for some tea, and Jason started his story.

“After… the warehouse, I woke up in my coffin,” Jason started. Damian felt his face pale and his heart clenched. “I had to dig out, and… I don’t really remember a lot after that, the first clear thing I remember is Talia pulling me out of a Lazarus pit.”

Damian froze in horror, “She put you in a Lazarus pit,” Damian echoed.

Jason nodded, “I asked where I was, where Bruce was. She told me that Bruce had sent me to her to get more training. I… I believed her at first, but then after a few months, I met Ra’s. He said that he’d chosen me to be the next Demon head after him. And I asked about you, and he said that you had told him to take me and… I didn’t believe him. So I ran away.” Jason looked up at him sadly. “I killed a lot of people, Damian, and I… I don’t think I regret it. They were all terrible.”

Damian understood his brother completely. “I know, Jason. I too have the blood of countless people on my hands. I only regret those who were innocent. The reason I stopped killing was out of respect for my father not… not because I morally object to it.”

Jason nodded, “Yeah… that’s, that’s actually really nice to hear you say, thank you.”

“I’m sorry that wasn’t what I said the day you left,” Damian said before he could stop himself. “I lied to you because I thought that it would be easier for you, but I… that was something I will regret saying until the day I die.”

Jason’s expression was unreadable to Damian. “I didn’t go into that warehouse because of that, Damian. I went in because my- because  _ Shelia _ told me that the Joker was gone, she lied to me and she stood back and watched as he-” Jason had to stop. “I’m not sorry that she died in there with me.”

Damian wasn’t sure what to say about that. “More tea?” He asked. Jason nodded.

“I’m almost afraid to ask but… what did Bruce do with the Joker after, you know.”

Damian tried to suppress a scowl. “He hid well, but I drew him out using Harley.”

Jason looked confused, “So… then you put him back into Arkham? Where is he? I haven’t seen anything on the news about him.”

“You don’t know.”

“Don’t know what?”

“The Joker and Harley Quinn are dead, Jason.”

Jason let out a slightly choked, teary laugh. “Really? How?”

“Much faster than I would have liked, but I didn’t have much time,” Damian said.

Jason’s eyes widened, “You…  _ you _ killed them? But what about what you just told me? Wasn’t Bruce furious?”

Damian’s lips quirked up slightly, “Father was… less than pleased, true. However, I know I did what was right.”

Jason contemplated this. “I can’t go back right now. Not yet. I still… I still get really angry when I think about him. I’m scared that if I saw him now… that I’d try and kill him.”

Damian nodded, “I understand, Jason. Besides, I’m not letting you leave my sight for some time.”

Jason smiled a little at that. “Okay.” He stood and helped Damian take the cups back to the kitchen. When Damian put his down, Jason embraced him tightly again. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”

“Anything, anytime, ahki,” Damian said.

Jason furrowed his eyebrows, “What does ahki mean?”

“It’s brother, in Arabic.”

Jason nodded, “Can you teach me?”

Damian smiled a bit, Jason had always been good with languages. “Of course.”

<><><><><>

Things were going very well. Damian lent Jason one of his old suits with red stripes and they would go out and patrol together by night. He would work on his commissions during the day and teach Jason some Arabic. He told Richard he was busy and wouldn’t be able to host him over the weekend.

Every night, Jason would start screaming in his sleep, and Damian would be at the boy’s side in the guestroom in a heartbeat. It was horrific to listen to, but they were getting better already, and it had only been two weeks. Winter was starting to set in on the streets of Bludhaven and Christmas wasn’t far off.

“Were you going to go back to the manor for Christmas?” Jason asked.

“I’m not certain. I hadn’t given it much thought.” That was a lie. He had promised Richard that he would go, not that he had talked to the child in a few weeks. He was very upset that Damian kept avoiding him.

“I think… maybe I should tell them then,” Jason said. He looked at Damian to see what he thought of the idea. “I could be a Christmas present, that’d be kind of… funny, right?”

Damian nodded, “Then that is what we’ll do.”

Jason nodded back. He was… a mixture of excited and nervous.

<><><><><>

Christmas could not come soon enough for Damian. Keeping Richard and his father off his back the past few weeks had been very difficult, and he was glad that the secret, so-to-speak, would be out of the bag.

He pulled up to the manor and Jason was practically vibrating in the seat next to him. It was dark out, they were all meeting for dinner on Christmas eve and then would spend the day together.

“You’re certain about this?” Damian asked. Jason nodded. “Okay ahki, let’s go.”

They walked up the driveway and Damian knocked on the door. Alfred opened it, just as planned.

“Merry Christmas, Pennyworth. I have brought something quite special as a present, and I feel you may like to see him,” Damian said. He then stepped aside to reveal Jason’s form.

“Hey Alfie…” Jason said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

Alfred’s face was white, “Master Jason… my god, how is this possible?”

“It’s a long story,” Jason said.

Alfred then looked at Damian with shock, and Damian knew what the man was about to ask. “It’s really him, Pennyworth. He’s alive.”

Alfred then embraced Jason tightly, “Oh my dear boy, I have missed you.”

“You too, Alfie,” Jason said softly.

They then took a step back from each other and Alfred looked toward Damian, “Master Damian, you always have a way of bringing your brother’s back home. Thank you.”

Damian nodded. “Have the others arrived yet?”

“Yes, Master Timothy and Master Conner arrived from San Francisco a few days ago. I believe they are all in the living room watching a movie at Master Richard’s behest.”

Damian nodded, “Well then, let’s go.”

Jason nodded silently, but before they came into the house, Alfred hugged him once more.

They walked into manor Damian and Jason put down their bags in the front and went to go see the others.

Alfred led the way, he opened the door to the theatre room and announced the new guests. “Master Damian and… and Master Jason.”

Bruce’s head whipped up to see them in record time, though Tim was right behind.

Dick was very excited and jumped out of his seat, ready to jump onto Damian, but he froze when he noticed no one else was doing anything.

Bruce stood then and moved toward the door. “...Jay?” He then looked at Damian.

“It’s really him, father. He’s back,” Damian assured.

Bruce then enveloped Jason in a bone-crushing hug. “Oh Jaylad, I missed you, I’m sorry that I couldn’t protect you.”

Jason was tense, and Damian could tell he was on the verge of a bout of Pit madness.

“Father, release Todd. He is claustrophobic,” Damian said.

Bruce immediately let him go and took a step back. “I… sorry.”

“It’s… alright,” Jason said. Those were the first words Bruce had heard him speak.

Tim came up to Jason next. “Jaybird, I… it’s really good to see you. How are you here right now?”

Jason swallowed, “Well, it’s a long story, but… well I guess I came back about a year ago.”

Bruce’s eyes widened. “Why… why have you stayed away for so long?” Bruce asked. He was hurt, really he was. The pain that had never stopped aching in his chest since the day he died was throbbing now.

“Well, in the beginning, when I had to  _ dig my way out of my grave _ ,” Jason gritted. “My head wasn’t right, I was in a sort of waking coma. Talia found me after a few months, recognized me while I was wandering around. She put me in a Lazarus pit and she told me that you’d sent me to her to be trained better. I didn’t start to suspect until Ra’s told me that Damian had… traded me for Tim, and then I figured out they were lying and left. I only found Damian just about a month ago.”

Tim and Damian were looking at each other with unreadable expressions to everyone but each other. Damian could see Tim was hurt, that Jason knew so easily that Damian would have never traded Jason for him, because he  _ loved _ Jason, and while he did care about Tim, it wasn’t the same. Tim could see that Damian was trying to convey to Tim that he loved them both equally and that he knew Tim didn’t believe him.

Dick was the one who cut the tension in half.

“Hi! I’m Dick!” He said happily. He was more than pleased to have another brother, even if he wasn’t the most pleased that Damian hadn’t hung out with him so he could spend time with Jason.

“Uh, hi. I’m Jason.”

“Do you wanna see me do a back-flip?”

“Sure…”

Dick did a backflip on the spot and Jason was actually impressed. “That was pretty good, squirt.”

Dick continued to do various stunts for Jason while Alfred supervised. Tim, Bruce and Damian had a meeting in the other room, Conner was awkwardly hovering in the corner.

“Are you certain it’s really him?” Tim whispered.

“As I have said, yes. I ran every available test, and he is aware of things that only he would be able to know,” Damian replied.

Bruce was silent and Tim turned to him.

“Are you going to say anything?”

“Hnn.”

“Great, thank you, Bruce, the world's worst communicator.” Tim sighed. “Well what are we going to do? Logistically, this is a nightmare. How are we going to get him back legal status and what about-”

“I don’t care about your personal opinions on the matter Timothy, but this is far from a  _ nightmare _ . This is a gift, one I will not squander squabbling over details. He’ll stay with me,” Damian snapped.

This attracted Bruce’s attention. “Are you sure that’s the best idea?” The man asked.

Damian’s eyebrow twitched, “What would you suggest? He comes back here to  _ you _ ? We all know how well that went last time.”

Bruce’s nostrils flared. “He’s my  _ son _ , he should be here, at home.”

“He’s terrified of you,” Damian spoke bluntly. “To be completely honest, the extent of his PTSD is extremely troubling and I cannot believe that he’d do better here with, as Timothy stated, the world’s worst communicator.”

Bruce looked more than slightly furious at that, and Tim took the opportunity to cut in.

“I agree with Damian, a sudden change probably won’t help Jason, and if Damian says he has a handle on helping Jason through this, then I say we let him. But… Damian, you have to admit that he’s going to have to deal with what’s happening, and that might be easier with a larger support network.”

Damian considered this. “Tt. You have a few valid points, Timothy-” Tim felt himself light up at Damian’s compliment, which he then felt embarrassed about, he was an adult, not some kid who worshiped the ground Damian walked on. “-would father be able to listen to Jason talk about the number of people he’s killed since coming back without inputting his personal opinion on the matter? How supportive of that can you possibly be?”

Bruce blinked and Tim had a similar look of concern.

“Jason’s killed people?” Bruce asked quietly.

“It was part of Talia’s training. She would set him up with trainers, terrible people, murderers, rapists, human traffickers, she would tell him to learn everything he could and then kill them,” Damian explained.

Bruce was silent and Tim was shocked. Surprisingly it was Conner that was the one to offer helpful advice.

“Why doesn’t he just stay with Damian until he’s ready to come back? I mean, no offence, Bru- er- Mr. Batman, but you don’t exactly have a great track record when it comes to convincing angry kids to live with you.” Conner looked at Tim and then at Damian.

“The alien clone has a point,” Damian said. Conner almost smiled. “It was a very poorly articulated point, but a valid one nonetheless.” Conner no longer felt like smiling. “You never react well to anger directed toward you.”

“That’s not…” Bruce trailed off at the looks Damian and Tim were giving him. “Fine, you may have a point.” Bruce rubbed his face and looked past Damian into the living room at Jason. “He’s so big.”

“He’s not a child anymore, and he finished growing up in the worst environment for a child there is,” Damian said. “I can… empathize.” Bruce looked down at Damian’s words. “He trusts me, he feels safe with me, he is staying with me.”

Bruce nodded, “That is fine.”

“Good. Now, I believe the turkey should be almost cooked,” Damian said before leaving the room.


	5. Damian

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Damian learns to open up.

Everything was starting to get better. Jason was operating in Bludhaven under the identity of Sparrow. Bruce was doing his Batman thing with Dick now operating as Robin. Tim remained in San Francisco with the Titans. Damian managed to get Jason quietly re-instated as living, and currently the man was finishing high school online.

Dick came over and stayed with Damian over the weekends, at first Jason felt a little awkward about being there, but soon enough he and Richard started building up a bond of their own.

Then everything started to fall apart for Tim.

Damian got a call from Bruce one night. “Damian… have you been in touch with Tim?”

“Not for a few days, why?”

Bruce was silent on the other end for a moment. “Superboy is dead.”

Damian’s heart fell. “I will… find him.”

“Thank you.”

Damian hung up and turned to Jason and Dick, who were playing each other in MarioKart. “I must go to San Francisco. Feel free to stay here in my absence.”

“Why?” Dick asked.

“Timothy is… missing, and Superboy is dead.”

Jason paused the game. “You want any backup?”

“No, ahki, I will be fine. The danger is over. Father is merely concerned over his… emotional wellbeing.”

Jason nodded, “Alright, well, I’ll watch the kid then. You want me to make the move on the gang on the east end?”

“Yes, but don’t bring Richard for that.”

Dick pouted but smiled again when Damian squeezed his shoulder and said he’d be back soon.

Damian raced to Gotham and took the Batplane to San Francisco. If Bruce had a problem with it, then he could argue about it later.

He arrived at Timothy’s apartment not long after and picked the lock, slowly dismantling the security measures that the young man had in place.

He walked into the apartment that Red Robin and Superboy shared. The living room was empty, untouched. Damian examined the dust on the countertop in the kitchen and saw that nothing had been touched. So either Drake wasn’t there, or he hadn’t eaten in three days. Damian knew what he would put money on.

He walked down the hall and into the bedroom. There was a small mass curled up on the bed, buried in blankets and wearing one of Conner’s leather jackets.

Damian didn’t say anything, he just walked around to the side of the bed that Tim was facing and crouched in front of the boy. Tim’s eyes were open, he looked at Damian, blinked, and then continued staring off into the middle distance.

Damian brushed some hair from Tim’s forehead and brushed the back of his hand across it. Tim had a fever, and it was clear he hadn’t eaten anything.

“I know you’re in pain, Timothy, it’s okay. I’ll take care of you,” Damian said softly.

He went to the kitchen and made a simple soup, something he could feed Tim quickly that wouldn’t cause him pain since he hadn’t eaten.

He came back into the room and saw Tim hadn’t moved at all. He removed some of the blankets, expecting Tim to fight him on that, but the boy didn’t.

He tried to get Tim to sit up, and then Tim made the first noise Damian had heard. A hiss of pain.

Damian was on high alert. Tim had an untreated wound somewhere.

“Timothy, look at me. Where are you hurt?” Damian asked firmly.

Tim moved the last blanket out of the way and Damian could see that not only was he still wearing the same bloody uniform he had been wearing when he found out the news, but that he had a deep and untreated cut on his thigh.

Damian looked up at his little brother, who was clearly trying to just fade away, and he resolved that he would do anything to stop him.

“Timothy-” Damian began with a slight undercurrent of rage in his voice. “Eat this, I’m going to look at your leg, okay?” By the end his voice was wavering.

Damian went to the bathroom and found the extensive first aid kit. When he came back, Tim was slowly eating spoonfuls of soup. Damian was a little relieved, he didn’t want to force Tim to eat, he would have, but he didn’t want to.

He examined the cut closer and put some numbing cream around the area. He very carefully cleaned it out and began to stitch up the wound. Tim finished his soup.

Damian and Tim then looked at each other, saying nothing.

Then Damian took Tim’s dishes and brought a glass of water. Tim drank it, and Damian tried to be… comforting.

“I’m sorry, Timothy.”

Tim stayed silent.

Damian then thought about what to do next. “You need to wash yourself, Timothy.”

Tim didn’t react at all. Damian sighed and went into the bathroom and started running some warm water into the large tub. He then went back to his brother, “Let’s get you out of the suit.”

Tim didn’t react at all to Damian undressing him and putting him into the warm water, which did concern Damian slightly. Damian washed the boy’s hair carefully, scrubbed away at the blood caked on his back, not his. He got the boy into soft clothes and then moved him into the living room where Damian could keep an eye on him while he dusted and cleaned the apartment.

When he was done, Tim hadn’t moved a muscle.

“Timothy. I need you to say something. Do something. You’re worrying me.”

Tim tilted his head to look into Damian’s eyes, “You’re worried.” Tim’s voice was a low whisper.

“Of course I’m worried, I have never seen you like this before.”

“And why do you even care?!” Tim shouted all of a sudden. “I’m not the little Dick Grayson that worships you! I’m not Jason, the only person I think you’ve ever actually cared for besides yourself! We aren’t a family! You can stop pretending!”

As upset as Tim’s words made him feel, Damian was more than happy to be yelled at if it meant Tim was done with the borderline catatonic behaviour.

“I’m not pretending, Timothy. You’re my brother, just like Jason and Richard, and I love you all the same. I’m here, Timothy. I’m trying to… be  _ here _ .”

“You’re trying to comfort me? How the hell do you even know what this feels like?! Have you ever even felt romantic love?! How the hell could you understand?!” Tim shouted. He stopped and looked at Damian. Something shifted in his older brother.

“Maybe I… father  _ and _ I- we have not set good examples of… emotional health. I apologize for that but you must understand that my upbringing wasn’t a place for emotions. If I cried I was struck down. So while you may not have known, Timothy, I was in love once, and like you, that was taken from me. I should have told you, I should have… modelled grief. I’m sorry. So if you need to be angry and yell at me, then that’s okay, but don’t say that I can’t understand.”

Tim stared at Damian with tear-filled eyes. “Who?”

Damian took a breath. “Raven.”

Tim was shocked, truly and genuinely shocked. Tim started to cry despite himself. “It hurts so much Dami,” he whimpered as he hadn’t since he was 14.

“I know, it does get better. And… the people we love, they don’t go entirely. I still see her in the violet flowers Alfred plants outside the manor, and in the sunsets. For now, just cry, Timothy, cry and cry until there is nothing left, and then do it again and again until you can’t anymore. And then you remember them, and you try to live again.”

Tim took Damian’s advice and sobbed into Damian’s chest until he fell asleep.

Damian carried him back to bed and then called Bruce.

“Damian? Did you find him?”

“Yes. He’s… not in good shape. I’ll stay with him until he agrees to come back to Gotham. He can’t be alone.”

Bruce took a breath, “Tell him that I’m sorry. And that Clark has made funeral arrangements for two weeks from now in Smallville.”

“Understood.”

Damian then took the time that Tim was asleep to go get more groceries. When he returned, he fell asleep on Tim’s couch and for the first time in years, he dreamt of violet eyes and black hair.

…

In the morning, Tim woke up to Damian making breakfast.

“You didn’t have to stay,” Tim said. He had puffy red eyes.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“Damian?”

“Yes?”

“Have they found his body yet?” Tim asked with a sniffle.

Damian swallowed. “No, not yet. But… Clark is going to be holding a memorial service in Smallville in two weeks.”

Tim frowned. “Do you- do you think there might be a chance that- that he might be-” Tim couldn’t finish the sentence, cut off by sobs.

“Timothy, I know that we’ve seen our shares of rebirths, of hope in the face of hopelessness. So if you’re asking me if there’s a chance? Then there may well be. But I don’t think he’s coming back, Timothy. I’m sorry.”

Damian had been briefed on what had happened. Superboy-Prime had driven Wonder Girl and Superboy into a massive explosion at the foot of the San Francisco LexCorp tower. Apparently, Wonder Girl had held Conner in her arms while he died, but there wasn’t time to get his body out before the building collapsed around them. So Damian was quite certain the man was dead.

Two days later, Damian had finally convinced Tim to at least come and stay with him and Jason until the service, and they (mostly Damian while Tim sat curled up on the couch wearing one of Conner’s jackets) packed up some of Tim’s things.

The doorbell rang and Damian sighed and went to answer it.

“If it would not hurt him worse, I would kill you where you stood for the pain you’ve caused him, clone.”

Conner smiled sadly. “I’m sorry.”

Damian moved aside. “Go. Fix what you’ve done.”

Damian watched them reunite from the door, and sensing (sort of incorrectly) that he was no longer needed or wanted, he slipped away.

He called Bruce to tell him the news and then he went home.

He took Dick back to Gotham and smiled and nodded emptily at the boy’s chatter. He dropped him off at the manor, and Bruce noticed that Damian was behaving a little strangely, this was only enhanced when Tim called him. 

“Hey… Bruce, everything’s fine here, but… Damian told me something and… I think maybe you should talk to him about it?”

“What did he say?” Bruce asked.

“Well, he said that he used to be in a relationship with Raven before she died. He said he’d never told anyone about it.”

Bruce’s heart ached for the boy. “Thank you, Tim. I’m glad you’re okay now. Tell Conner I’m glad he’s back.”

“I will, thanks B, see you around.”

Bruce did a little snooping on the computer and found out where Damian had gone. It wasn’t back to Bludhaven, it was a small park on the edge of Gotham Bay.

Bruce found him sitting on a park bench, staring out over the water.

“Father,” he spoke, acting like he wasn’t surprised. He tucked something into his pocket before Bruce could see. “What brings you here?”

Bruce looked at his son, who hadn’t told him that someone he cared for had died, and wondered where he had gone wrong in their relationship.

“Damian… I know that I can be distant, but you can tell me anything. You know that, right?”

Damian glanced at Bruce, “What’s brought along this… moment of openness?”

“Tim… he told me that you’d mentioned something about Raven.” Damian tensed at the name.

“Timothy should learn to keep to his own business.”

Damian was going to get up to leave, but Bruce stood too and grabbed his arm. “Damian… you can talk to me.”

Damian stopped, he took two breaths, and then he started to speak. Words he had never spoken to anyone ever.

“I... I was going to ask her to marry me,” Damian whispered.  Bruce was frozen as Damian pulled a necklace out of his pocket, and on it was a diamond ring. "She always talked about... about giving everything up. She never got the chance."

Damian was desperately trying to hide his tear-filled eyes, but then he looked over at Bruce, his strong, immovable father, and saw that  _ he _ was crying.

“I’m so sorry, Damian. I never realized… I… I’m sorry, that I’ve failed you as a father.”

Damian let go and for the very first time, at the age of 28, he cried into his father’s shoulder.


End file.
